VALKYRIE SMASH

The council meeting came to an end and Sam returned to his lab, leaning back into his seat and heaving a long tired sigh. Wolf and Elina looked at each other in silence, the female scientist's brows furrowed by the uneasiness weighing down on her. Her eyes seemed to pleading him to do something so after a while the old man let out a resigned sigh and asked.

"How did it go?"

There was no answer at first.

"Well, it's too early to tell."

It was quite a surprise when Sam told them his plan of taking control over what was left of humanity. They were sure he wasn't the power hungry kind and he was always reluctant to climb the ranks as he hated the responsibilities that would be thrown at him, however a lot has changed during the week he spent in the Nephilim world.

Before he had no problem letting the other Generals do their thing while he chased after Loki, but after learning about the Primordials, the Fallen and the Awakened he simply couldn't do that anymore.

"We will be holding the Ritual in a few days." He said. "Unlike those from the Sanctuary we still have a few million survivors. Even if only 50% of them are infested with Madness, they might end up pushing us closer to extinction."

Picking up her cup, the female scientist stared at her reflection in the dark liquid.

"It's still difficult to believe." She said. "An ancient alien whispering something directly into people's minds and driving them crazy, but some of them could learn magic because of that…"

"According to Atropos those under fifteen are less likely to contract Madness, though it's not guaranteed that they Awakened. As for adults it's only a question of when. We need to isolate them inside a Purification barrier until we create the second Key."

Unlike what happened in the Nephilim world there was no need for the first few phases of the Ritual. They already had an Aether bait ready which means their dimension's Primordial most likely picked up its pace since it was already on its way.

There was a very high likelihood that some had already started hearing the Whispers.

"Sam." Wolf held Sam with his eyes. "Do you plan on making use of the children?"

An obvious question with an obvious answer.

"Not right away, of course." He answered. "It'll take years of training to get them to a decent level."

Even if they were to count all of Freyja's Children currently on their side, it was clear that they didn't have anywhere near enough soldiers to carry them through the race. They had to find some way to increase their fighting potential, but unfortunately without the original Alice they couldn't create more Valkyries and that leaves them with one choice.

It was for this reason that Sam had to step forward and take over leading the survivors. He couldn't afford to allow humanity to go back to how things were so he's attempting to gather all of them under one flag. At the same time, he wanted to remove any hindrances that might arise in the future by becoming the highest authority on their side. Trying to join an inter-dimensional war while still under the leadership of someone else was a recipe for disaster so it would be best for everyone if he could make the final decisions himself.

That said, it was easy to see that he was going down a very dangerous path.

"I know I don't have the right to say this but… don't you think you're taking this too far?"

Sam turned to the old man with narrowed eyes.

"You're correct." He said. "You really don't have the right."

Sam was just a barely known scientist who rose to power recently. He didn't have any political influence or support, and though his reputation as the one who led humans to victory might be of help, it was doubtful whether the idiots at the top would just move aside and hand him the power and control they claimed for themselves.

Forcing his way to the top would without a doubt make him seem like the villain, and as history has shown humans don't really like decorators. However he didn't have the time to play politics when his enemies weren't pulling any stops in this race.

He understood what Wolf was trying to say, however he wasn't about to take his advice on the matter, not after he brainwashed the Valkyries into absolute obedience.

Sensing the rising tension Elina quickly searched for something to say.

"Still, don't you think it's a little inefficient?" She said. "Once you create the second Key there won't be any way for us to create a new Awakened, right?"

She was addressing a very important point. The Olympians, despite being from a supposedly higher realm, had no way of forcing their soldiers to Awaken without a Primordial's influence. Because of that they always bring mondaine soldiers with them whenever they invade a world in order to create a new Key. They also rely on the survivors of the worlds they destroy to increase their numbers, recruiting those that are left after the Ritual is done.

Once the Ritual is done and the second Key is created they would reach a standstill. Not only would they have to find other Primordials, they would also have to increase their population.

"According to Atropos…" Sam paused for a moment, thinking it was a bit unsettling how Nino's sister was their only source of information on the matter. "Having two Keys in one place would be like lighting a beacon. While the anti-inter-dimensional barrier might stop Fallen worlds from invading ours, the same can't be said about Primordials from other dimensions."

With the ability to move between plains of existence barriers meant nothing to the ancient entities. Once they sense the accumulated Aether it would be only a matter of time before a few would decide to pay them a visit.

"So the more Key we create the more of those Lovecraftian beings we invite?" Though she has already concluded that a while ago it didn't stop the female scientist from feeling uncomfortable.

"Enemies as well," Wolf added. "I'm guessing your competition has some way of locating each other."

"The barrier might stop them from opening portals on the planet itself, but we can't do anything about space." Sam took his glasses off and massaged his temples, feeling a ghastly headache. "We have no choice but to fight off anyone who tries to invade, or we could try hiding it on other worlds."

Even Atropos' ability Limited Rift is incapable of isolating Aether. Their only option was to try and keep the concentration of the element to a minimum if only to buy time. The Olympians have dimensions designated specifically to store Keys, however they could afford to do so because they have the numbers.

"In the end we won't get anywhere without increasing our numbers first."

Sam had an idea, however he was a bit hesitant to go ahead with it. For the time being he would have to deal with the Resistance as well as the Thor and the Nephilim. Once the Ritual is completed and the second Key is created, only then would he give it a try.